'Bade' brings the dead to the afterlife

Tri Vivi Suryani, Contributor, Denpasar

Cremation is one of the most important life-cycle rituals within the Hindu religion.

Balinese Hindus believe a human body is comprised of five basic elements -- fire, earth, air, water and ether which are locally called panca maha butha, and the burning of bodies into ashes is believed to easily release the soul or atman from earthly things and returned to God.

And during the cremation ritual, the wadah or bade -- a tower- like structure plays an important role since it is used to carry a dead body before it is purified in the cremation ritual.

A bade, be it small and modest or large and elaborate, will always be used in any ngaben ceremony. The bade is usually made of wood heavily decorated with a myriad of ornaments including dragon-like figures such as Naga Basuki and Naga Anantaboga.

A bade is a multi-tier structure, sometimes up to 11 tiers for one tower. However, only royal and high-caste families are allowed to use an eleven-tier bade while lower-castes may be allowed to use three to nine tiers.

I Nyoman Singgih Wikarman writes in a book Ngaben Sarat that the first three tiers represent the power of the three worlds: the upper, the middle and the underworld. Each tier represents the 11 levels of heaven and the world mountain Maha Meru.

Ketut Buda, a bade artisan from Banjar Abian Kapas in Denpasar, said that creating a bade requires specific skills inherited from senior artisans.

"Bade is one of the most important aspects in the death ritual. We have to be precise and careful in making a bade. Otherwise, we could encounter unexpected things," Buda believed.

Buda started his profession as a bade maker at the age of 20, learning the skill from his own grandfather, I Ketut Regug. By making a bade, he also learned by heart the entire steps of a death ritual.

In addition to bade, a ngaben ceremony also uses large hollowed out animal statues as coffins, mostly in the form of a bull for a man, or a cow for a woman. Other animal figures could be lions, deers or elephants.

The statue/coffin is made of a solid piece of wood. It can be painted white, black or red depending on the social and family status of the person. The white bull, for instance, is only made to carry the remains of a Brahman (priest) and the black one is made for certain clans or families. The red bull is only used for the pande (artisan) clan.

Buda's talent is spread by word of mouth. A single-tier bade can be completed within two or three days, while a multi-tier bade could keep him working for three weeks. His wife, Wayan Sukri and his two sons help him in the business. Each bade costs between Rp 1.5 million and Rp 10 million to make.

"All the materials are now very expensive," Busa said, adding that he needed lavish velvet fabrics, paper, wood and other decorative ornaments in creating a bade.

Despite the surging price of materials, Buda has to maintain the quality of his work, and his reputation as well.

"We must master and abide by the centuries-old rules in making a bade," he added.

He seemed to disagree with the current changes made by some artisans. "Some artisans put wheels under the bade. I think it violates the existing rules," he said. "I am afraid the changes will reduce the sanctity of a ritual ceremony."

A gigantic bade is usually carried by dozens or even hundreds of people when proceeding from the home of the deceased to the cemetery where the body is to be cremated. To ease people's burden, a number of artisans have modified the bade by putting wooden wheels under it.

Prominent Hindu scholar I Ketut Wiana, however, supported the changes so long as they had positive impacts on the Hindu disciples.

"In religious life, we should adjust to any dynamic changes in society," said Wiana, adding that the use of wheels under a bade should not be considered a problem.

Beautiful ornaments, he said, might help by covering up the wheels.

"People tend to argue that a cremation ceremony is a communal work, a representation of a solid society," he said. "By adding the wheels, the sense of communality may not be reduced. They can pull the bade together."

Wiana would even agree if people used a car in a cremation procession -- if they think it's efficient and inexpensive.

"The most important thing is their sincerity in performing the ritual for their respected family member."